Love At First Sight, Really?
by Ed.cullenator
Summary: BREAKING DAWN SPOILERS: So Paul imprinted on you know who. How did that happen? When? Read to find out! one shot


**Hey! This is a one-shot about Paul imprinting on Rachel Black. Let me know what you think and leave oodles of reviews!**

The rush of the warm salt water against my skin brought back the memories of my childhood. Memories of swimming at the beach and playing in the sand rushed to my mind. I thought back to the summers of my childhood spent with my mother. I remembered the way she would play in the water with my sister, my brother, and me; the way she would play bury us in the sand at First Beach. Swimming at the beach was always a stress-reliever for me, no matter where I was.

Being home was never too pleasant for me, what with the constant reminders of my absent mother everywhere. The water was my only release, my peace from the sadness of my house. When it wasn't summer, I was constantly at school, whether I was studying or working. That old house was still too painful for me, especially with my father, the constant reminder.

Seeing my baby brother all grown up was a little shocking, too. When I found out that Jacob had run away, my heart broke. I didn't enjoy losing yet another member of my family. When Dad called to let me know that Jake had returned home, I automatically knew what I was going to do. Returning home to the reservation was a bit of an adjustment, but I didn't mind. I had my brother and my father, and as long as I had those, an air mattress didn't make any difference.

From underwater I could hear my name being called. Automatically, I returned to the surface of the water. Jacob and one of his friends were standing by the shore. Had Jacob not been my brother, I could have mistaken the two of them as brothers. They both had the same dark russet skin, the black hair, black eyes, and they both were half naked in cut off shorts. They stood like tall strong skyscrapers. When I came home and found Jacob almost two feet taller than me I was shocked, to say the least. Our family had never been too tall.

"What do you want?" I asked him as I slowly waded out of the water.

"Dad asked me to call you in for lunch."

"Oh, okay. Toss me that towel, will you?" I asked him.

His friend grabbed it off the beach and walked toward me. He handed the towel over, smiling. "I'm Paul."

"Rachel," I said, waving a hand.

"Jake never told me he had such a pretty sister." I blushed, embarrassed. Jacob punched him in the arm. Hard. "Calm down, Jake."

He turned back to me, the large grin still set on his face. "So, are you the college-bound sister, or the happily married sister?" he asked me.

I laughed. "College-bound."

"That's kind of what I was hoping for," he admitted, still smiling. For some unknown reason, I felt happy at this.

Jacob was a few paces ahead of us, his feet stomping into the sand like he was angry. Paul called up to him, "Hey Jake, do you think you could convince Billy to delay lunch a few minutes? I just want to ask Rachel something."

Jacob turned around, his arms slightly shaking. "Paul! Ugh! Did you honestly have to go and do that?!" Paul shrugged, chuckling. Jake sighed, narrowing his eyes at us, and his figure quickly retreated into the forest.

"So," I started, "what did you want to ask me?" I was honestly curious. It was like their was some pull towards Paul, and I just _had _to know what he had to say.

"I know that you probably think I'm a total creep, but, will you be my soul mate?" My lips formed an 'O' and I barked out a laugh. "Just hear me out, okay. See, Jacob and I, and a bunch of other guys here from La Push, we have this secret. We're werewolves," he said, his eyes dead set on mine, his tone serious.

I couldn't laugh at this; he seemed too serious to be making it up. "What?"

"You know all those old Quileute legends?" he asked. I nodded. Ever since I could remember, my dad had told Rebecca and me those myths and legends as bedtime stories. "Well, some of them aren't exactly myths. For example, the werewolf story, and unfortunately, in order for that to be true, the story of the cold ones has to be true, too.

"Jacob and I, along with Sam Uley, the Clearwaters, and a bunch of other guys are all werewolves. We can shift our form into that of a wolf. It's kind of cool, actually."

I let out a heavy breath, and logically said, "Okay then, prove it."

He smiled, his black eyes twinkling. "I don't think Jake would be too happy if I phased in front of his sister."

"Well, I guess it's too bad for Jacob that I'm older than him, and he can't tell me what I can or cannot do."

"_I _don't think it would be such a great idea either."

"Okay, then." I started to walk away. "Thanks for the story, Paul."

I heard him grumbled, frustrated, under his breath, and then he was right beside me. "If it weren't so dangerous, I would phase right now, but it is. Do you know Sam and Emily?" I nodded. "Have you seen Emily's scars?" he asked. I nodded again, thinking back to her breathtaking face, half covered in claw marks. She told me she had been mauled by a bear. "That was Sam. He lost control, and phased in front of her." Paul's serious face lit up. "Yet, they're still together, still going to get married."

"So what's the point of that story? True love or something?"

He smiled, and nodded. "Imprinting."

My eyebrows knit together, "What?"

"It's another legend, called imprinting, and recently, we're starting to think that it's not much of a myth anymore. Basically, imprinting is like love at first sight, but much more powerful."

"And Sam and Emily imprinted?" I asked.

"Yes, and that in itself is another long story," he said. "So far we've had three imprints, and now, I guess it's four." He was staring intently at me now.

Wait, he said now it's four, meaning somebody had just imprinted. The answer was obvious, and my mouth hung open, "Oh, wow." I smiled then. "I guess I'm not surprised."

His face lit up like a Christmas tree, and his grin spread across his face. His figure towered over me as he came over and hugged me. His strong arms wrapped around me, and he laughed. "I am soo happy right now, you have no idea!"

When he released me from the hug, he asked, "Would you like to take a short walk along the beach? I would really like to get to know you."

"Sure." And with that he took my hand, leading me back towards the shoreline.


End file.
